If we were to make a list of mankind’s greatest achievements, we might start with things relatively recent in our history: putting a man on the moon, mapping the human genome, summiting Mount Everest, etc. Those things are impressive, surely, but sometimes I wonder whether they can compare with the achievements of our ancient ancestors that we tend to take for granted: the invention of the wheel, for example, the domestication of animals, and maybe most influential of all, the ability to create and control fire.
Fire, of course, is one of nature’s greatest forces. Its power is something that man and beast alike appreciate and respect. But anthropologists tell us that when our earliest forefathers learned to harness fire for our own purposes – as a source of warmth, a means of protection, and a way of procuring and cooking food – it marked a pivotal moment in our history. In many ways, it was the foundation for virtually every achievement that came later.
The Pentecost [detail] (1613) by Fray Juan Bautista Maíno
In the iconography of the Church, fire has always been symbolic of the Holy Spirit, and we heard the reason why in today’s first reading (Acts 2:1-11). Other than the form of a dove that appeared at the baptism of Jesus, the tongues of fire that came to rest upon the apostles in the Upper Room is the only visible manifestation of the Holy Spirit in all of the Scriptures. That particular form is surely no accident, precisely because of all that fire symbolizes for us as humans. Fire is powerful, deadly even, but it is also purifying and renewing. It has the ability to burn away what is dead and impure in order to allow what is new and unsullied to spring forth.
The Holy Spirit does exactly the same thing. In the psalm today (Ps 104:30), we asked the Lord to send the Spirit to “renew the face of the earth.” If you think about it, it is hard to make something new, and it can be painful as well. We shouldn’t be surprised then that much of the work of renewal is challenging; whether we are talking about the renewal of our own hearts, resolving again to turn away firmly from sinfulness, or the renewal of our Church, praying for and insisting upon meaningful steps to purify the Body of Christ from all that corrupts her, or the renewal of our world, striving to build the kingdom of God. None of that is easy – and it shouldn’t be really, not if what we really desire is something new. When we ask the Lord to renew us by the power of his Spirit, we should think of the renewal that comes from fire: purifying, cleansing, transforming.
Fortunately, the Spirit’s work of renewal is not just to purify but also to strengthen and confirm. In the Gospel today (Jn 14:15-16, 23b-26), Jesus promises the disciples that the Spirit will remind them of everything that he has taught them. Jesus knows that our hearts at times can grow weary, and that our spirits can be distracted and dismayed by living in the world. That’s why he sends forth the fire of his Spirit to renew us – first to burn away all that is unnecessary and unhelpful, and then to fortify us by filling us with the invigorating power of his grace. The Spirit reminds us, as St. Paul says, that “Jesus is Lord” (1 Cor 12:3b) and that his Lordship should be the foundation for all of our desires, motivations, actions, even our very lives. Each day we choose to place our hope in the belief that Jesus is Lord over all, and the Spirit helps us to make that choice again and again, especially when it is difficult. As St. Paul says, the Spirit gives each of us particular gifts – gifts that we call “charisms” – by which he empowers us to share in his work: the work of renewal.
Later this week, the priest assignment changes in our diocese officially take effect. That means that this is my last Mass here at St. Thomas as pastor. It has been a wonderful four years here, and as I said several weeks ago, I am very grateful for the many blessings the Lord has given to me in and through this community. I know pastoral changes can be difficult, but they can also be an opportunity for growth and renewal. I hope the gifts that God has given me have benefited this community. I know Fr. Jason will have new and different gifts to share. In all things, we should remember it is really Christ who shepherds us, not the fallible man we see before us.
Sometimes we can fall victim to the idea that everything stands or falls based upon the priest leading us. That mentality isn’t really Catholic though, for two reasons: first, because it forgets that it is really always the Lord leading us, and he is always trustworthy; and second, because it minimizes the importance of the community as a whole and the identity you have as the People of God. That is why I really can’t imagine a better way to conclude my time with you than by celebrating today’s feast with you. Pentecost shows us clearly that the Holy Spirit is active and at work in each of us and in every community of the faithful. Yes, pastors are important, but pastors come and go. What remains is you, the People of God, and it is in you that the Spirit is active and present, inviting all of us – and not just the clergy – to utilize the gifts we have been given to participate in the Spirit’s work of renewal.
Sometimes we can fall victim to the idea that everything stands or falls based upon the priest leading us. That mentality isn’t really Catholic though, for two reasons: first, because it forgets that it is really always the Lord leading us, and he is always trustworthy; and second, because it minimizes the importance of the community as a whole and the identity you have as the People of God. That is why I really can’t imagine a better way to conclude my time with you than by celebrating today’s feast with you. Pentecost shows us clearly that the Holy Spirit is active and at work in each of us and in every community of the faithful. Yes, pastors are important, but pastors come and go. What remains is you, the People of God, and it is in you that the Spirit is active and present, inviting all of us – and not just the clergy – to utilize the gifts we have been given to participate in the Spirit’s work of renewal.
Herrad of Landsberg, Hortus Deliciarum: Pentecost (c. 1180)
Perhaps more than any other feast of our liturgical year, Pentecost reminds us of the role that the laity have in building up the kingdom of God. Blessed John Henry Newman, the English priest and cardinal who will be canonized a saint later this year, was once asked a sarcastic question about what value the laity have in the Church. He replied, “The Church would look rather silly without them.” How right he is, especially today! Whenever we as Catholics place an emphasis and importance on clergy to the exclusion or detriment of the laity, we look rather silly because we have inverted the way that Jesus intends his Church to be.
In a very real way, the Church’s emphasis is always on you, the laity – in a sense, you truly show what it means to be “Catholic” today. You are the ones who are on the front lines of the culture, living out the Gospel in the world, proclaiming the Good News by word and action, demonstrating the love of Christ to others. We clergy aid and assist you; we encourage you and teach you and absolve you, and hopefully never scandalize you. But the true work of renewing the world cannot be done by us – it must be done by you, in your homes, in your workplaces, in the places of culture and business and the arts and beyond. In every facet of life, in every sphere of society, the Good News of Jesus must be proclaimed, and it is you the laity who principally must proclaim it! Thus, the Spirit comes as fire to each of us. That is the essence of our Pentecost celebration – to be renewed in our spirits by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so that each of us can share in the Lord’s work of renewing the face of the earth.
In a very real way, the Church’s emphasis is always on you, the laity – in a sense, you truly show what it means to be “Catholic” today. You are the ones who are on the front lines of the culture, living out the Gospel in the world, proclaiming the Good News by word and action, demonstrating the love of Christ to others. We clergy aid and assist you; we encourage you and teach you and absolve you, and hopefully never scandalize you. But the true work of renewing the world cannot be done by us – it must be done by you, in your homes, in your workplaces, in the places of culture and business and the arts and beyond. In every facet of life, in every sphere of society, the Good News of Jesus must be proclaimed, and it is you the laity who principally must proclaim it! Thus, the Spirit comes as fire to each of us. That is the essence of our Pentecost celebration – to be renewed in our spirits by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so that each of us can share in the Lord’s work of renewing the face of the earth.
Friends, our celebration of today’s solemnity is a pivotal moment in our history. For while we are two thousand years removed from that Pentecost event, the Spirit is as alive and active among us as it was for our earliest forefathers in the faith. The Spirit’s action is always new, always renewing, helping us to go ever deeper into the identity of Christ. This year and every year, Pentecost reminds us not to take for granted the Lord’s sending of the Spirit upon us, that gift which is the foundation for every good work that he calls us to do. What we celebrate are not our own human achievements, but rather what God has accomplished for us: that he has poured into our hearts the fire of his love through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Lord invites us to be renewed in that fire this day – to let all that is impure be burned away and then to be strengthened and confirmed in the grace of the Spirit’s gifts. Having been renewed, he then charges us – each of us individually, all of us as a community – to use those gifts to share in the Spirit’s work of renewing the face of the earth. By our own paths, according to our own callings, guided by the Spirit’s movements, may we each continue to burn with the holy fire of mission and forever proclaim, “Jesus is Lord.”
The Lord invites us to be renewed in that fire this day – to let all that is impure be burned away and then to be strengthened and confirmed in the grace of the Spirit’s gifts. Having been renewed, he then charges us – each of us individually, all of us as a community – to use those gifts to share in the Spirit’s work of renewing the face of the earth. By our own paths, according to our own callings, guided by the Spirit’s movements, may we each continue to burn with the holy fire of mission and forever proclaim, “Jesus is Lord.”
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